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CONFIRMED: Network Vision/LTE deployment is under way in the Austin market

S4GRU

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by Robert Herron

Sprint 4G Rollout Updates

Wednesday, September 5, 2012 - 7:45 AM MDT

 

S4GRU has received a tip that Network Vision was spotted underway in the Austin metro area. We were able to send out a core member to verify. We are happy to report that Sprint is indeed under way with Network Vision/LTE deployment in the Austin market.

 

S4GRU Member ATX4G first reported the work at the site. Later S4GRU Member boomerbubba, went out to verify for this article. While at Site #SA14XC087, Boomerbubba was able to actually talk with one of the field techs working at the site, and offered this report:

 

This tower is definitely under active construction for NV. These guys are installing new panels and stuff. I chatted with one guy from the crew, who said they were a subcontractor working for Ericsson on 180 sites in the area. He confirmed that there will be new panels, remote radios up top, fiber run up the tower, etc. According to him, this tower will be live with 4G in a week. Actually, he said, "You'll have 4G in a week," which I take to mean the LTE signal will be ready for acceptance testing by somebody up the project chain.

 

There you go. Verification of the first Austin site. Most likely, there are many more currently under active deployment all around greater Austin at this moment. We also reported this weekend more activity in the Austin market with a new site at Ft. Hood Medical Center.

 

It looks like the Austin market is no longer being delayed and back on track with an active deployment. The original Network Vision schedule had work starting in the Austin Metro Area in June. So, it appears like it is starting 2-1/2 months later than originally planned. So perhaps we can expect an end of November launch and a January/February completion? By the end of September, they should be hitting their stride and we can better evaluate then. Stay tuned.

 

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ATX4G

a lot of towers now have a sprint LTE antennas installed but i can't tell which ones are turned on. i've been to 4-5 confirmed sprint tower sites in the area whenever i get the 4g icon on my galaxy S3 and flip to phone settings to read the signal asu but it's always very weak. doesn't make any sense. either these towers aren't putting out a very good signal , or this phone is ver sensitive and switches to 4g when it sniffs a blip of lte. no one has an explaination for this, they just think i'm crazy. i drive 100+ miles every day as part of my job, i know austin well. there's almost 1 million people here. cell towers are like starbucks, there are 2 on every corner :) by looking at the sensorly map and my knowledge of the hills, bridges and over passes in austin i'd say the signal i'm getting is coming from ben white/lamar area. there is a tower at ben white and frontier trail and another behind matts el rancho. there's a new tower at a construction site across from reds porch. i couldn't get access to even read the fcc registration #.

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S4GRU

a lot of towers now have a sprint LTE antennas installed but i can't tell which ones are turned on. i've been to 4-5 confirmed sprint tower sites in the area whenever i get the 4g icon on my galaxy S3 and flip to phone settings to read the signal asu but it's always very weak. doesn't make any sense. either these towers aren't putting out a very good signal , or this phone is ver sensitive and switches to 4g when it sniffs a blip of lte. no one has an explaination for this, they just think i'm crazy. i drive 100+ miles every day as part of my job, i know austin well. there's almost 1 million people here. cell towers are like starbucks, there are 2 on every corner :) by looking at the sensorly map and my knowledge of the hills, bridges and over passes in austin i'd say the signal i'm getting is coming from ben white/lamar area. there is a tower at ben white and frontier trail and another behind matts el rancho. there's a new tower at a construction site across from reds porch. i couldn't get access to even read the fcc registration #.

 

You want to look at RSRP in the LTE Engineering screen under the Debug menu to determine your LTE signal strength. http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/2040-bars-lie-for-lte-signal-strength-how-to-determine-your-actual-lte-signal-strength/

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zionzr2

@ATX4G

The Cell site across from Red's Porch is not new.

Its been there a while its just now visible after they leveled the all the old development for the new construction along the street. I work in that exact area. It does not appear to be a sprint tower anyway. Those are typically a lot taller.

 

I have not been able to determine the source of 4G Tower in that area. Some of my passes by Matts I have 4G and Others I do not.

 

This morning I got a signal I could measure in front of the doors at the Sprint Store at Mo-Pac and 290 (Speed Test result was 9Mbps Down). I did not get the signal strength capture b/c I could not remember the debug code. I have it written down and repost with the numbers next time I go by there.

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Craigbtx

I tried the tower near 183 and McNeil that Themosstoys was talking about. I was about a 1/2 mile east of 183 on McNeil.

 

I got half the speeds you did. Instead of 13 up I got 6 up.

Was I in the right place? Maybe they had some of it shut down?

 

Objectively speaking 6 up was good but out expectations have risen with LTE being implemented.

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CableZL

Huzzah, I'm getting 4G LTE at work right now! Watching a replay of the Oregon vs Washington St. game on the WatchESPN app and the quality looks good!

 

I'm off of Metric and Braker.

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quickquest88

i posted in the lte sightings thread, but figured i do it here too.

 

i got a signal near ih-35 and mcneil:

 

https://maps.google....820430354230393

 

got about 11Mbps up and 3 Mbps down. I dont know what to look for in a tower, so i have no idea where it was, or how close I was.

 

looks i jumped on the lte bandwagon at about the right time.

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id6klub

To follow up on the 183 & McNeil area, I checked it out while parked outside of Krispy Kreme tonight. Attached are my screens during testing. Very nice...now follow me around town.

 

mcneiltest1_zps24504f62.png

 

mcneiltest2_zpsc892ce29.png

 

mcneiltest3_zpsa3c55d05.png

 

mcneiltest4_zpsdc9ddbdf.png

 

mcneiltest5_zpsb16401fc.png

 

 

I have also experienced it in the following areas over the last week or so:

 

Round Rock NW of IH-35 & SH-45 (outside and inside of Sam's Club)

Howard Lane & IH-35 (Techridge area)

McAllen Pass in between Howard Lane & Wells Branch Pkwy

and later at my house nearby but then the LTE was switched off (possibly testing tower temporarily)

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Craigbtx

Using my HTC EVO 4G LTE phone....

 

I was in the Krispy Kreme parking lot at 12586 Research Blvd Austin, TX between McNeil and Oak Knoll and tested the 4G LTE speeds and got 36 MBs down and 14MBs up. This is on the new Sprint 4G LTE towers.

 

On Sprints 4G Wimax a couple of years ago I got 10MBs down. So a significant increase!

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